Rostron
and fellow fisherman Clint Simek of Brielle were in Rostron's boat the
TNT. The two were shark fishing 2½ hours east of Manasquan Inlet on
Tuesday when the shark leaped out of the water and landed in the bow of
their boat.

It
then proceeded to eat through a broom stick, seat cushions, and the
fiberglass decking before the two men were able to subdue it with a gaff
and rope.

Three
days after the brush with the shark, Rostron and Simek showed the broom
stick - now in two pieces - and where the teeth gash marks, some as long
as three inches, occurred in their boat. They also held onto the head
of the shark, and intend to preserve the jawbone and teeth.

"It's missing a few teeth," said Simek. "We found one in the boat that was an inch and a half long."

Rostron
said the damage to his boat, which he docks at the Glimmer Glass in
Manasquan, will cost $5,000 for a professional to fix.

"I
would like to leave the teeth marks in, like a badge of honor," he
said. "But the floor marks have to be fixed or water will leak through.
They have to be filled and fiberglass has to be re-applied."

The
havoc-causing mako was 8-feet-4-inches long. It surprised the two
fishermen initially when it appeared by the side of the boat and took
one of their baits.

The
fish, which Rostron said became extremely aggressive and started
jumping out of the water - a trait mako sharks, especially females are
known for.

On the
fifth jump it landed in the bow of the boat. It happened in less than 30
seconds, when a typical fight with a shark can last 45 minutes or more
Rostron said.

"Normally
when you fight a shark you bring it along side the boat and harpoon it,
or gaff it," said Rostron. "Then you put a tail rope on it and shoot it
in the head with a bang stick."

A bang stick is a specialized firearm used in shark fishing to kill it before bringing it aboard.

"We never had a chance. This one jumped right into the boat," said Simek.

Both men felt fortunate to have not suffered any injuries.

"If there was a third person in the boat it might have been game over for someone," Rostron said.